VIDEO: Spring-Ford teachers' team wins Dancing with the Stars for SNAP

ROYERSFORD — Sequined dresses, smiles and crowd-pleasing music filled the Spring-Ford High School Auditorium Saturday night.

Despite the expanded format this year, there was a line forming in the hall 30 minutes before the doors opened for the third annual Spring-Ford Dancing with the Stars competition.

The auditorium was full for both the 4 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. shows.

Teachers and community members danced to raise money for Students Need an Alternate Party (SNAP), the after-prom event hosted every year.

Advertisement

Just like in the national competition, viewers cast their votes for their favorite dancers, but these votes came in the form of dollars. One dollar equaled one vote.

This year, it was the 5/6/7 Burning Temptations that won the coveted mirror ball trophy. The team brought in more than $3,000 for SNAP.

They danced to the classic crowd pleaser, Charlie Daniel’s “The Devil went Down to Georgia.”

Rich Cechak, a sixth-grade learning support teacher, donned a curly wig and a suit with red glitter lapels for his portrayal of the devil. He said it was great getting to know his colleagues outside of the classroom.

“We did a lot with the kids too, like raising money at the school,” said Treasure Maack, a health and physical education teacher at the Seventh Grade Center. “The kids got really involved and that made it so much better.”

But it wasn’t just teachers who took home a prize this year. The Spring-Ford Moms took home the Judge’s Choice Award.

Shirleen Smiley was a judge for the first two years of competition and was approached to gather a group of mothers to dance.

The group danced their hearts out to a hip-hop mix including “Party Rock Anthem” and the summertime favorite “Call Me Maybe.”

Before the second performance, Smiley said that they were having a lot of fun.

The first group, The Mullet Maniacs, was comprised of community members. They proved the 1980s are still cool with their dance.

“I live and work in the community, so I do everything to support my community,” said Erin Cohen, who works at Ambler Savings Bank in Limerick.

Cohen and other Maniacs showed off their acid-wash denim collection while they danced to Billy Joel and Aerosmith.

Some of the loudest cheers were for the Brooke Elementary School teachers and their rendition of PSY’s “Gangnam Style.”

Along with the veterans, there was a new addition that took an award home.

Melissa Albitz, who started working for Spring-Ford in August, danced her way to the most votes gathered by a single-performer.

Albitz performed a duet with professional dancer Stephen Jackson to Jennifer Lopez’s club hit “On the Floor.”

Despite school loyalties, after each performance there were always hands ready with dollar bills to drop into the buckets being passed around.

It is that sense of community and fun that makes the event so great, said Barbara Ann Sharon, a committee chairperson for the event.

“It’s a group of community representatives pulling together to provide a safe alternative after the prom,” Sharon said.

The alternative after-prom party usually has 900 to 1,000 students in attendance, according to Sharon. SNAP offers activities for the students like inflatable games, poker, photo booths and more.

“We got to try something new, and got to know a lot more people in our building and do something great for the kids as well,” said Rhonda Zimmerman, a math teacher at the Seventh Grade Center and a member of the winning 5/6/7 Burning Temptations.